OK - Let's work together now

Well, it's been three days since the election and President Obama won. Some Republicans are doing some soul-searching. Others are saying the political equivalent of "The dog ate my homework." But the election was too close for either side to be smug.

Where can we agree? Where can we meet halfway? That's the job of the President and the Congress now. It's the job of Governors and legislatures across the country. It's our job as citizens to keep up the pressure. Let's keep an eye on our Alaska delegation. Are they voting for the common good or partisan obstinence?

We need to do the best we can for our tens of thousands of veterans with their health care, both physical and mental, and finding them good jobs. We need to meet the needs of women veterans. We need to make sure our military bases have good housing, good schools, and the best hospitals. We need to be as skittish as we can muster about more military engagement, and yell at the top of our voices if we think we're sliding into another mess overseas.

We need to get busy making sure that every school child's education is the best it can be, whether they live in Palm Springs or Harlem, Anchorage or Angoon. Employees increasingly need advanced degrees, but students incur tens of thousands of dollars in debt to earn those precious pieces of parchment. That school debt can follow them the rest of their lives, ruin their credit rating, and hang over their heads. We should be doing everything we can to make it easier, not harder, to pursue higher education.

We need to get off the dime on global warming and start manufacturing and using wind turbines and solar energy equipment. With a few exceptions, the states are behind the renewable energy curve. Let's get ahead of it.

In the spirit of basic fairness, let's make sure that women get paid the same as men for the same job. There are laws on the books, but fair pay is not a reality yet.

For heaven's sake, let's plug the holes in our voting process. Get a bipartisan commission to come up with an election system that is not vulnerable to the kind of blatant partisan interference we saw in Ohio and Florida. It's embarrassing! A nonpartisan national election commission that sets the process for all the states is worth investigating. I nominate the League of Women Voters for the job.

There is so much than can be done if everyone pulls together. I know it's Pollyanna-ish, but I'm sticking with it for at least 24 hours!